Notes and quotes from Petit’s near-perfect game for SF Giants

First, I am obliged to report that the lifetime score of seeing a perfect game remains: Steve Kroner 1, Henry Schulman 0.

If you haven’t read the early version of the game story yet, here it is:

Eric Chavez, who broke up Yusmeiro Petit’s perfect game, thought the right-handed did everything right in the that confrontation: “In that at-bat, I bet you he’d say he didn’t miss any of his pitches,” Chavez said. “The 2-2 curveball in the dirt was probably the biggest pitch of the at-bat and I laid off. I think that’s what he was getting other guys to swing at. I wasn’t trying to do too much. I was trying to get a good at-bat and get a hit.” Chavez even thought he’d see a 3-2 curveball, but when Petit threw the fastball he was ready.

Hunter Pence on whether he thought he had a shot at Chavez’s sinking liner: “When it was hit it felt like it was one of those dreams where you can’t run fast enough. Off the bat it was a little too far. I gave it my best effort, just a little bit shy.”

There were two things I really wanted to ask Petit afterward. Question one was why he raised his hands in triumph, as if he’d gotten the perfect game. He said, through translator Jose Alguicil: “I was thanking God for everything that happened right there, even though things didn’t go the way I wanted. Even when he got the hit I was thanking God for what happened, being here and showing what I can do. This was my first complete game in the big-leagues. I felt the same as I would have if I threw a no-hitter.” Now that’s humility.

Question two: The Giants cut Petit twice from the 40-man roster this year. He could have left both times as a free agent yet re-signed minor-league contracts both times and went back to Fresno. Why? “I feel very comfortable with the Giants. They’re honest people. I like how they work. I felt I had a chance if I stayed here.”

Petit speaks English. In fact, he understood all the questions. In interviews he feels more comfortable with a translator. Heck, with reporters like me who misquote everybody and take everything out of context, that’s a good plan.

In the long list of surprising stats for a guy who fell one strike short of history, Petit’s third win was his career high. He’s won all three since he took Matt Cain’s place in the rotation on Aug. 27.

In case you’re wondering about the future, as long as Petit remains on the 40-man he is under Giants control until 2017. He will be eligible for arbitration the next three years. I’m thinking the Giants will tender him a contract this winter.

This was Petit’s 40th big-league start. He did take a no-hitter into the eighth inning for Arizona in Pittsburgh in 2009. Ronny Cedeno broke it up with a single. Petit also carried one into the eighth in a Venezuelan winter league game. Did I mention he throws 88-89 mph?

Much-maligned defensive catcher Hector Sanchez was the quarterback. He put down the fingers and his countryman complied. “He didn’t shake me off at all,” Sanchez said. “That was really good for me. We were working on the same page.”

It was fairly noticeable when manager Bruce Bochy pulled left fielder Brett Pill after five innings and stuck Juan Perez out there. Perez saved the perfect game in the sixth inning by catching a sinking liner by pitcher Patrick Corbin that he initially misjudged. It was less noticeable in the ninth when Bochy had shortstop Joaquin Arias move to third, in place of Pablo Sandoval, and inserted Brandon Crawford at short. Bochy does that a lot these days and also did it for the ninth inning of Matt Cain’s perfect game last year. Bochy said he did think about that as he made the move.

As you’ll recall, Arias made the final play of the Cain game when he stepped back to glove Jason Castro’s grounder then made a strong throw to first for the out. Arias also got the final ball tonight, an easier grounder by A.J. Pollock, and made an excellent defensive play in the first inning that mostly went unnoticed at the time. He hit the dirt and backhanded a Paul Goldschmidt grounder then made a good one-hop throw to first, where Brandon Belt made a nice pick.

No, Belt did not sit in Petit’s spot in the dugout this time. Roger Kieschnick picked a spot and didn’t move. As Pence said, “Kieschnick told me he didn’t move for six innings. He wanted to go to the bathroom and he wasn’t moving.”

Bochy on Petit: “It was a beautiful game, just a tremendous display of pitching. The way he pounded the strike zone all day, that’s a speical pitcher. I couldn’t be happier for him. He fought his way back up here from Fresno. He’s trying to send a message that this is where he belongs.”

Cain returns from the disabled list for Saturday night’s game against Arizona.